6 
commencement, when Sir Jofhua Rey- 
nolds, in his firft leéture, read on the 2d 
of January, 1769, detailed the admira- 
ble effeéis which might be expe€ted to re- 
fult from an academy in which the polite 
arts might be regularly cultivated, bemg 
at laft opened among us by royal munifi- 
cence. He begins as follows: ‘* The 
priscipal advantage of an academy is 
that, befdes furnifhing abie men to di- 
re€t the fiudent, it will be a repofitory for 
the great examples of the art. The(e are 
the materials on which Genius is to wark, 
and without which the firongeft istelleé& 
may be 'ruitlefsly or devioufly employed.” 
The Le&ture in which this remark wes 
made was read in the year 1769 by aman, 
who, independent of his profeflional me- 
rit, compofed the bett ruks for direéting 
the fiudies and regulating the tafte of the 
young «rifts, ina language | hat gave him 
a right to be clafled among the mott ele- 
gant writers of this country. His fif- 
teenth, and laft, difcowife he read on the 
roth of December, 1790, and died about 
twelve or fourteen months afterwards. 
Had the expectation which we quoted 
from the firtt difcourfe been realiied, it 
might be fuppofed that many men, ‘‘ able 
to direét the fludent,”* would have become 
candidates. for the vacant chair. Mr. 
Wel was elected without oppofition; and 
however difiinguifhed his talents as a 
painter, bis warmeft admirers did not ex- 
pe& him to compofe fuch lefiures as Sir 
Jofhua Reynolds. He filled the fation 
very re{peCtably until the year 1806, when, 
for caules that he hints at in ig letter, 
and which, ‘rom what has been repo: ted, 
do not tell mucin favour of the temper, 
candour, or unan'mity, of the royal aca- 
demicians, he reigned. 
Here was ancther epportunity for any 
of the great painters that the auvanmiages 
of a royal academy mutt in th; courfe of 
near forty years have matured, to have 
fepped forwards as candidates to jucceed 
him. No fuch, we believe, appeared, 
and Mr. Wyat; az arciitec?, was vo:ed 
into the vacant chair. Its therefore, we 
may efiimare the progreflive advancement 
of the arts in the Royal Academy by the 
abilities of their prefident, the chronology 
is as feliows. Sir Jofhua Reyzolds was 
the firfi; Mr. Weft, che fecond; and Mr. 
Wyatt, the third. 
Leaving thefe points to the fpeculation 
ef our readers, we proceed to the Britifh 
Gallery, in which are exhibited 257 arti- 
cles; fome of which we recoliec&t to have 
previoufly feen at the Royal Academy, 
and were highly gratified with feeing 
Monthly Retrofpeé? of the Fine Arty 
[March 1, 
again. There are many new pictures of 
very great merit ; and it is, on the whole, 
a molt refpetable colle@ion, and higily 
honourable to the artifts who have fur- 
nifhed it. 
By Mr. Weft, late Prefident of the 
Royal Academy, there are 15, and fome 
of them in his beft manner. Sir William 
Beechey, 3; Thomas Daniell, 3; H. Fu- 
fceh, 3; R. Freebairn, 7; G Garrerd; 2? 
TF. Lawrence, 2; J. Opie, 6; "W. Owen; 
3; R. Smirk, 24, from “the Arabian 
Nights; T. Stothard, 1; J. Northeote, 3; 
A. Calleot, 13 Ff. Turret,’ 9 3"homcy,; 
43 R. Weitall, ro; James Ward, 4; Paul 
Sanuby, 43 by the late J. Hamilton Mor- 
timer, theugh laf mentioned, yet in many 
refpecis firft in pro!eifional abilities, there 
are 4. ; a 
‘“¢ Through all the fcenes his rapid ftroke 
beftow'd, 
Rofa’s wild grace, and daring fpirit glow’d ; 
In him—ah! lofty ere half his powers were 
fhewn, 
Britain perhaps an Angelo had known.’ ) 
The land{cape of one of thefe ao 
viz. The Death of Orpheus, was painted by 
Mr. Fhomas Jones, who was a pupil of 
Mr. Wilfon’s, .and for fome years ttudied 
in Italy. The figures, by Mortimer, ad- 
mirabiy affimilate with the land{cape, and 
are diawn with great correétnefs and. 
fp Writ. 
kod IMeeting of Vortigern and A 
s pait of a feries of pictures which he in-= 
bare ‘0 have. painted from the Englifh 
hiftery, if death had not deprived the 
world of his abilities. It is elegantly 
conceived, and mo‘ exquiftely finifhed. 
The Battle of Agincourt was intended 
for the fame feries, and has teen engraved. 
The general objection to pictures of battles 
has been that they are all alike. To this 
cenfure the Battle of Agincourt is not 
liable. The figures, particularly that of 
David Gam, are charaéteriftic: the mo- 
narch is indeed the Enghifth Alexander. 
Sir Artegall, the Knight of Fuflices and Zalusy 
bis Yron Man. From Spenfer’s Faery Queen. 
In the above pifture this. admuable 
artift difplayed great and peculiar powers. 
The whole is cericeived with propriety, 
and painted with great force and bril- 
liancy. The extremities are not only cors 
re&t, but charatteriftic. The figure of 
Sir Artegall was originally a fimkiog re- 
femblance of himfelf; as this was not m- 
tentional, to take away this idea of am 
individual portrait, he made fome altera- 
tions in the face. We think that .this 
one picture would -completely refute rs 
indi- 
